Preamp straight into Powercab?

[Meeotch]

Does a preamp signal need power amp modeling as well to sound legit through the Powercab? I have a Powercab on order and am wondering if a standalone preamp (like a Synergy module) would sound good straight into the Powercab, or would I need to add my Torpedo Cab M+ after the preamp to insert a power amp model?

[abteenz]

I have the same question. I want to buy one of the Kingsley tube preamps. I was wondering if it will work well with Powercab or not.

[Meeotch]

Well I never got to try out this setup. I ended up returning the Power cab as it sounded like an overpriced toy compared to my other cabs. I would imagine you want the power amp modeling to make any preamp sound "complete". 

[OmniFace]

The power amp does play a part in the tone, but how much depends on the amp.  A high gain amp is often mostly preamp distortion and the power amp isn't as important.  Alternatively a lower gain amp will often use the power amp more.  Many older amps are low gain didn't have a master volume.  So you just turned everything up to get it to the "sweet spot".  Newer amps often do most of the work in the preamp and have a master volume to control level.

 

The Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier supposedly has a "cold" bias setting for the power amp.  That means that the power amp is dialed in so that it is used to make the sound of the preamp louder and not really color the tone with it's own distortion.

Running a "real" preamp into the PowerCab would probably sound fine, but it would be missing the little bit of influence from the power amp, mostly depending on the amp design.  A high gain amp may not sound much different.  A low gain amp might not be great.